At Home in Our Old Town:
Every House Has a Story
By Shirley Baugher
Volume Two in the series dealing with life in Old Town

This volume tells the story of some of Old Town’s best known houses—from the oldest, built on the ashes of the Great Fire in 1871, to the newer Weese row houses and the house of world renowned architect Walter Netsch. The book takes the reader on a tour of the Old Town Triangle, stopping to examine the old farm house on the corner of 1802 N. Lincoln Park West, the little fire cottage at 216 W. Menomonee, built from a kit provided by the Fire and Aid Society, the Louis Sullivan row houses (designed by the master himself), the Wacker mansion (the closest thing Old Town can call an actual mansion), and the Angel Door house (which once held the only ball room in Old Town). The “tour” will also stop at Francis Chapin’s old studio (which he would never recognize today), the gracious old Queen Anne houses on Crilly Court, the European-style house of telephone pioneer Joseph J. O’Connell at 407 W. Eugenie (now the home of John and Pat Russell), and the storefronts in the 1700 block of North Wells Street. The pages are filled with color photographs of houses, art, and artifacts.

Along the way, the book visits some of the unforgettable neighbors who live(d) in Old Town: Paul Angle, Harry Weese, Herman Kogan, Francis Chapin, Dick and Mary Ann Latham, Marge Landek, Walter Netsch, and Henry Betts. We’ll dispel some rumors and share some little-known stories. By the end of the tour, we hope the reader will feel s/he has walked through the history of Old Town, and will want to come back for Volume Three—Dining in Our Old Town—a book of Old Town’s favorite recipes, old and new.